'Last November I was emotionally drained – but now I'm loving life,' she continued.

Summer reportedly first met Hollywood last year when she was working at his local pub, where he had arranged a birthday party for his now estranged wife Alexandra.

She also added that she and the 52-year-old celebrity chef began their relationship 'way after' his 19-year marriage to Alexandra had ended.

Defending their age gap, Summer said: 'There are many other people in the world with age gaps, and marriages and kids and everything else and I'm fine.'

Hollywood and Alexandra – who married in 1995, and share a 16-year-old son Josh – confirmed the end of their marriage in November 2017.

'It is with sadness that we have decided to separate. Our focus continues to be the happiness of our son... we ask the press and public to allow us privacy during this very difficult time,' the pair announced in a joint statement.

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They had previously separated in 2013, when the TV star admitted he had an affair with Marcela Valladolid, his co-star on the US version of Bake Off.

Meanwhile, Hollywood recently admitted that he isn't keen on the fame his television career has earned him.

Speaking to the Radio Times, and defending his decision to remain on Bake Off following its move from BBC One to Channel 4, he said: 'I stayed with Bake Off. The girls abandoned it. But I was the one put under siege.

'I became the most hated man in the country! It's not fun for someone that doesn't like being in the limelight.'